Out of Salem: D.E. May & Friends

Statement

Please join us for a reception 3:00 - 4:30 PM, Saturday, January 20, 2024.

PDX CONTEMPORARY ART is pleased to present Out of Salem: D.E May & Friends, an exhibition featuring work by D.E. May alongside many of his Salem friends: Brad Ford, Bonnie Hull, Craig Klyver, Natalie Laswell, Bryan Null, Dan Schmidt, Terry Schneider, Monte Shelton, and John Van Dreal.

D.E. May spent his entire life in Salem, Oregon, traveling beyond just a few times. May referred to his hometown as “Island Salem" and he lived and worked in a small space in the heart of downtown that he named “Regionaires.” Several creeks, rivers, and canals divide the city into sections so it could be considered a group of little urban islands. A number of May’s works include text and images of canals and waterways, as well as layouts and mapping of the buildings and industries of the city. May drew inspiration from nearby: timber mills, logs, workmen’s tools, rolls of paper, and the ever collegial corner bar.

On the surface May’s existence seemed hermetic but he had a close group of interesting friends—writers, readers, stitchers, painters, restaurant and bar owners, poets, vintners, nurses, and designers. He also communicated with a number of people outside of Salem and the state by sending mail art. His daily trips to the library to look at books and magazines gave him a surprisingly worldly view and bank of knowledge. This exhibition presents a look at some of what comes out of Salem in connection to D.E. May, his beloved Island Salem.

With Salem’s rich history, there is no wonder, May and Friends found countless inspirations in this historic town. South of Portland by 50 or so miles, the historic downtown where May’s studio space was situated is but a stones throw from the Willamette river. The historic downtown has no shortage of bars, shops, restaurants, and alley ways, where May found many of his materials that he would repurpose elevate and ultimately give a new meaning to as objects. Salem is home to Willamette University, one of the oldest Universities in the American West, situated right next to its very own stream. The waterways segmenting through the Salem area were an important inspiration to May, much of his work depicting, or dissecting these waterways, and surrounding land masses or “islands” as he so dubbed them. Pop culture, has never shied away from the historic town, with arts and music flourishing there, libraries and county fairs being held in the town and even academy award winning films using locations to help drive home their story. Notably, Ken Kesey’s One Flew over the Cuckoo’s Nest, filmed at the Oregon State Hospital in Salem, OR. Needless to say, when one visits the historic downtown it’s easy to see the microcosm that May submerged himself within, getting to know one town so well, allowed him to travel artistically farther than one who never puts down those type of roots.